Written Answers Monday 23 October 2006

Scottish Executive

Fisheries

Eleanor Scott (Highlands and Islands) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive how many farmed fish are known to have escaped into Scottish waters in each year since 1999.

The Executive have supplied the following corrected answer:

Lewis Macdonald: The number of reported escapes from Scottish fish farms in each year since 1999 has been; 273,863 (1999), 501,981 (2000), 94,010 (2001), 449,805 (2002), 161,022 (2003), 92,647 (2004). Statutory reporting of escapes was introduced in 2002.

Health

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people are currently diagnosed with coeliac disease in each NHS board area.

Lewis Macdonald: This information is not held centrally.

Health

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance is provided to health care professionals regarding the detection, diagnosis and treatment of coeliac disease.

Lewis Macdonald: The Executive is aware of the importance of ensuring that all health professionals receive appropriate guidance regarding the detection, diagnosis and treatment of all conditions, including coeliac disease. They are required to complete and pass nationally recognised training programmes.

Health

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is satisfied that individuals living with coeliac disease have adequate access to on-going medical care, given that the disease is a lifelong, chronic condition.

Lewis Macdonald: Delivering for Health set out the Executive’s approach to the management of long-term conditions such as coeliac disease. People should be supported to help them live with these conditions through services which are responsive to all of their needs, delivered quickly, close to home wherever possible and as early in the course of the disease as possible.

  We are currently consulting on a Long-Term Conditions Toolkit which will allow Community Health Partnerships (CHPs) to assess the extent to which their services for long term conditions match the model set out in Delivering for Health. Use of the Toolkit, will be mandatory on all CHPs.

Hospitals

Mr John Swinney (North Tayside) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many companies were invited to tender to provide the Scottish Regional Treatment Centre at Stracathro Hospital.

Mr Andy Kerr: Following a public advertisement and prequalification process, three companies were selected to proceed to the Invitation to Negotiate stage of the NHS Tayside procurement.

Hospitals

Mr John Swinney (North Tayside) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the names and addresses are of the companies which were invited to tender to provide the Scottish Regional Treatment Centre at Stracathro Hospital.

Mr Andy Kerr: The names and addresses of the companies which were invited to negotiate are as follows:

  Nations Healthcare Ltd Greencoat House Francis Street London SW1P 1DH

  Capio Healthcare Ltd Aria House (Level 6) 23 Craven Street London WC2N 5NT

  Amicus Healthcare (Scotland) Ltd 16 Charlotte Square Edinburgh Midlothian EH2 4DF.

Hospitals

Mr John Swinney (North Tayside) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many companies responded to the invitation to tender to provide the Scottish Regional Treatment Centre at Stracathro Hospital.

Mr Andy Kerr: One company submitted a tender to provide the Scottish Regional Treatment Centre at Stracathro Hospital.

Hospitals

Mr John Swinney (North Tayside) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what stage has now been reached in the tendering process to provide the Scottish Regional Treatment Centre at Stracathro Hospital.

Mr Andy Kerr: Contract negotiations with the preferred bidder are on-going.

Hospitals

Mr John Swinney (North Tayside) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how value for money will be achieved in the contract for provision of services at the Scottish Regional Treatment Centre at Stracathro.

Mr Andy Kerr: Value for Money (VfM) will be delivered in this project through a structure that makes effective use of key resources such as staff and facilities. VfM has been demonstrated through a quantitative assessment of price and a qualitative assessment of the bidder’s ability to meet clinical, workforce and other requirements.

  The quantitative assessment of price has been made using comparators with the equivalent cost of undertaking the activity in the NHS in Scotland. The qualitative assessment of the bid’s ability to address the clinical, workforce and other requirements of the project was carried out separately from the financial evaluation and involved key clinical and other staff in the evaluation process.

  Audit Scotland reviewed the Value for Money approach taken to ensure that the calculation was performed against the appropriate comparators.

Hospitals

Mr John Swinney (North Tayside) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the key performance indicators will be in the contract to provide the Scottish Regional Treatment Centre at Stracathro Hospital.

Mr Andy Kerr: Contract negotiations with the preferred bidder are on-going, the details of which are "commercial in confidence" at this stage. The contract will, however, set out a comprehensive and sophisticated performance management regime whereby the provider must meet a detailed list of key performance indicators. This will be subject to a structured review process throughout the operation of the treatment centre.

  The treatment centre will also be subject to the same level of review by NHS Quality Improvement Scotland (QIS) as all other NHS facilities and will be included in any activity undertaken by NHS QIS within NHS Tayside.

Housing

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-13887 by Malcolm Chisholm on 8 February 2005, what the (a) lowest, (b) highest and (c) average discount is that has been granted to tenants who purchased their home through right to buy in each local authority area, expressed at 2005 prices.

Malcolm Chisholm: The following table contains the minimum, maximum and mean discounts granted between 1979 quarter 2 and 2006 quarter 1 to tenants who purchased their home through right to buy, broken down by local authority. The data have been adjusted to 2005 prices.

  Discounts Given to Tenants Purchasing their Home through Right to Buy (at 2005 Prices)

  

Local Authority Area
Right to Buy (Old Terms)
Right to Buy (Modernised)


Mean(£)
Minimum(£)
Maximum (£)
Mean (£)
Minimum (£)
Maximum (£)


Scotland
22,066
22
153,000
12,840
1,541
20,540


Aberdeen City
26,830
61
74,970
14,134
9,000
15,405


Aberdeenshire
20,509
1,369
73,425
12,582
4,503
17,945


Angus
19,256
1,948
49,929
11,162
1,948
15,899


Argyll and Bute
21,953
3,516
61,677
13,215
10,424
15,000


Clackmannanshire
21,814
680
59,327
n/a
n/a
n/a


Dumfries and Galloway
18,153
218
44,000
11,765
9,602
15,000


Dundee City
22,218
1,502
61,677
12,602
6,840
15,000


East Ayrshire
18,426
2,886
62,852
11,738
6,000
19,065


East Dunbartonshire
25,946
1,481
105,800
14,126
11,014
15,000


East Lothian
27,095
842
111,606
14,955
14,685
15,405


East Renfrewshire
23,607
1,852
58,800
13,954
13,363
14,685


Edinburgh
26,815
291
153,000
13,067
7,129
15,000


Eilean Siar
16,777
1,474
41,890
9,140
9,140
9,140


Falkirk
20,803
1,270
107,935
12,332
6,853
15,000


Fife
18,566
22
91,047
12,742
4,212
15,405


Glasgow
26,031
765
97,500
13,517
1,541
15,405


Highland
19,684
789
76,700
13,448
7,910
20,540


Inverclyde
21,002
1,243
52,259
n/a
n/a
n/a


Midlothian
26,338
3,937
84,586
13,020
7,393
15,000


Moray
19,870
2,450
63,000
11,999
8,800
15,537


North Ayrshire
18,481
168
55,803
12,539
8,615
16,946


North Lanarkshire
21,001
91
63,146
12,722
7,049
15,000


Orkney
18,431
4,712
40,484
n/a
n/a
n/a


Perth and Kinross
21,397
3,858
65,104
13,279
8,800
15,405


Renfrewshire
23,600
578
56,880
12,372
6,280
15,405


Scottish Borders
18,772
1,597
71,957
12,668
8,504
15,214


Shetland
22,876
3,499
51,691
14,685
14,685
14,685


South Ayrshire
21,248
1,572
73,290
14,103
9,252
15,097


South Lanarkshire
21,743
1,058
59,915
12,248
1,849
15,405


Stirling
23,318
1,657
84,000
13,602
11,259
15,405


West Dunbartonshire
24,591
2,645
70,488
12,932
6,530
15,405


West Lothian
20,157
27
111,606
14,400
12,180
15,000



  Source: Scottish Executive Development Department Analytical Services Division Housing Statistics branch.

  Notes:

  1. For this analysis, the amount of each discount was converted to 2005 prices using the UK GDP deflator. The GDP deflator is a measure of inflation across the whole domestic economy.

  2. Cases where no discount was granted have been excluded from the analysis.

  3. In some local authorities, there have not yet been any sales under modernised right to buy. This is indicated by n/a (not applicable).

  4. By definition, the maximum and minimum discounts represent data outliers, or atypical extreme values. They are therefore not representative of the data as a whole. If the lowest and highest 1% of cases with a discount greater than 0 are excluded from the data, the minimum discount under the old terms is £9,477, and the maximum is £42,834. The mean is almost unchanged at £21,569.

  5. Right to buy sales are subject to modernised terms as of 30 September 2002.

Housing

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-5784 by Ms Margaret Curran on 27 February 2004, what the position now is in respect of its research into right to buy sales and re-sales.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Executive’s report The Right to Buy in Scotland – Pulling Together the Evidence contains our most recent analysis of Right to Buy sales and resales. Copies of the report were sent to all MSPs on 28 September 2006. The report is available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 40721), or on the Executive’s website at:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2006/09/26114727/0.

People with Disabilities

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much each local authority spent on aids and adaptations for householders in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Malcolm Chisholm: The amount of private sector grant approved by local authorities for carrying out improvements for people with disabilities is shown in the following table.

  Amount of Private Sector Grant Approved for Improvements for People with Disabilities: 2005-06

  

Scotland
17,745,000


Aberdeen City
405,000


Aberdeenshire
320,000


Angus
382,000


Argyll and Bute
530,000


Clackmannanshire
134,000


Dumfries and Galloway
649,000


Dundee City
246,000


East Ayrshire
286,000


East Dunbartonshire
201,000


East Lothian
155,000


East Renfrewshire
143,000


Edinburgh (City of)
2,388,000


Eilean Siar
592,000


Falkirk
196,000


Glasgow City
1,775,000


Highland
1,460,000


Inverclyde
297,000


Midlothian
211,000


Moray
300,000


North Ayrshire
941,000


North Lanarkshire
748,000


Orkney
148,000


Perth and Kinross
614,000


Renfrewshire
203,000


Scottish Borders
197,000


Shetland
292,000


South Ayrshire
539,000


South Lanarkshire
2,130,000


Stirling
289,000


West Dunbartonshire
422,000


West Lothian
554,000



  Source: IMP1B returns submitted by local authorities to the Scottish Executive Development Department Analytical Services Division (Housing Statistics)

  Note: 1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest thousand.

Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body

External Relations

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body when the Parliament’s contribution to the European Commission’s consultation, Plan-D for Democracy, Dialogue and Debate , was submitted to the Commission.

John Scott: The External Liaison Unit report on the "Our Voice in Europe" Youth Forum was sent to officials at the European Commission Representation offices in London and Edinburgh on 22 September 2006. It was also sent to the Scottish Executive who will reference the report in their "Building a Bridge" submission to the Commission later this year. The Clerking and Reporting Directorate contribution to the "Building a Bridge" submission was sent to the Executive on 2 October 2006.

External Relations

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body when the report on the "Our Voice in Europe" Youth Forum held in the Parliament in May 2006 was completed.

John Scott: The External Liaison Unit report on the "Our Voice in Europe" Youth Forum was completed on 19 September 2006.